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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: plane · swing · bank · tube · cold · spell · mug · march

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. tube — the underground
  3. spell — letters
  4. swing — music
  5. bank — for money
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. swing — to play on
  9. march — the month
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bank — of a river
  12. march — the month
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. spell — a short time
  15. mug — to rob
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cold — not warm
  18. bank — for money
  19. tube — a container
  20. plane — a tool
  21. cold — an illness
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. mug — a face
  24. march — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com